The Colloid Base

Over the years that I have been a fan of ice hockey I have always had a favorite ice hockey team that I have cheered for.

I have to admit that my favorite team has changed every now and then though, but that is merely because I have been moving around from city to city.

I guess that humans somehow change their emotions depending on where they life.

One big reason for this might be that it is easier to cheer for the same ice hockey team as your hockey friends cheer for or people at your workplace cheer for.

Having a favorite ice hockey team that you can identify yourself with can in many cases be good for your self confidence though. For example you and those around you will always know where you stand. This is something that can be important in many cases.

The one thing that I love the most though is that you go to an ice hockey game with your fellow hockey fans buddies; it almost feels like the people at the arena are your family.

Whether you have thought of it not, ice hockey brings people together and it can create strong and lasting friendships and that alone is a good reason to be a hockey fan.

HockeyTribute.com is an informative site for ice hockey fans and a place where you can learn more about NHL and ice hockey fights.

A useful golf exercise tip to take into consideration is the fact that warming up before your game of golf can dramatically help you improve the quality of your game.

The warm up session does not need to be something elaborate or strenuous. You can get creative and take a brisk walk from your car to the course.

The idea is to get your muscles warm before you even engage in stretch exercises prior to tee off. This is the sort of golf exercise tip that should not be ignored by any golfer.

Stretch exercises are very important to the golf swing tip. We have seen from various golfers who have taken on our exercise program. And yet stretch exercises will work out much better for you when you briefly warm up before embarking on them on the course.

The idea is to get your muscles warm and ready before doing your stretch routine in readiness for the game. You will prove this golf exercise tip because usually after completing your warm up and stretch exercises, you will feel much more comfortable when executing the golf swing.

The confidence alone will put you in a perfect frame of mind to make very few mistakes while consistently making those extra long drives.

Warming up may sound strange. Probably as strange as exercises sounded in golf in the first few years. But the fact of the matter is that golf has changed dramatically and virtually almost all pros are involved in serious golf specific exercise programs these days.

By implementing this extra golf exercise tip of warming up prior to your exercises or even game, you will see a tremendous improvement in your performance.

Coaching youth sports is a challenge. Most of our kids are really happy to have us step up to the plate and coach and, despite the time we give up, most parents find the experience equally rewarding. However, there are some major things that every coach needs to do and understand before they start the season: 1) coach with the proper attitude; 2) coach with the proper fundamentals; and, 3) learn and teach the difference between the “Dad Hat” and the “Coach Hat”.

Coaching the Right Attitude

We all love our kids and, let’s face it; we also love playing sports with our kids. For me, it’s the way that I spend most of my free time and it is right up there as one of my favorite things to do. That being said, I also need to realize that statistically, none of the kids that I coach will ever play professional sports, nearly all of them will not play sports in college, and many of them will not even play varsity sports in high school. So, what does this mean for us as a coach? We need to emphasize all the other aspects of sports and the life lessons that make us love playing the game. Mostly, we need to make the experience fun!

In 1988, Robert Fulghum wrote the book “All I Really Need to Know I learned in Kindergarten”. I’ve often told people that you can learn everything you need to know by playing sports - especially youth sports. Many of the same lessons apply, but on an even bigger scale where kids learn success and failure, wining and losing, sportsmanship and teamwork, and how to respond in many pressure situations. None of these are easy lessons. Winning with grace is just as hard to teach as losing with dignity. How can you do this and make sure that everybody has a great season? That’s the trick.

Every team you ever coach, especially teams with younger kids, will be split between kids that are talented and kids that are not. The goal that you have as a coach is to make sure that every one of those kids has a great experience and wants to play again next year. I take the most pride in the job I did as a coach when the worst kid on the team loves the sport and keeps playing year after year. The way that I do this is to emphasize things other than on field performance - I try to stress effort, trying your best and hustle.

There are several practical things that you can do to emphasize these “other” characteristics. In basketball, for example, instead of emphasizing and keeping stats for scoring, keep stats on hustle, picks set, good defense, rebounds, filling a lane, or just being in the right position. After every game, point out something positive that every kid did during the game. Award a point for each time a kid does something you emphasize and give stars or sew on patches when points are accumulated. You’ll see that these kids will do anything to get a star on their uniform, even pay attention in practice!

Coaching the Right Fundamentals

Kids of any age can learn to do things properly. They may not have the motor skills developed yet, but they can at least try to do it right. One of my favorite misconceptions is that “practice makes perfect”. That’s totally wrong; practice doesn’t make perfect, practice makes PERMANENT. What I try to teach is: “Perfect Practice Makes Permanently Perfect”. That’s a pretty big difference!

Of course, this really changes things for a youth coach because we need to teach the correct fundamentals or we’ll simply be reinforcing the bad habits kids develop. The hardest thing to do as a coach is to try and correct a flaw that a kid has developed over years of “practice”. This is even harder when the kid is good, because correcting the fundamental flaw generally means that getting worse before getting better. That means the kid is going to be reluctant to try this “new” way and may not stick it out. In the long run, the difference could be huge. While we’ve already acknowledged that that we’re not developing professional athletes, there is no reason to limit the ceiling on how well each child may develop. Coach’s Corner, Continued

The solution is simple: we need to learn the right fundamentals before we start coaching. It’s a responsibility that we accept when we volunteer to coach. Now, up front, I want to make sure to state that most of us think we know much more about sports than we really do. We think that because we played and we were pretty good that we clearly know how to teach a kid to play baseball or basketball. That’s simply not true. Much of what we learned was wrong. We may also not know the right way to communicate what we know to kids. Or, we may not know anything about the sport if we’re stepping in and coaching soccer or another sport that wasn’t “big” when we were young.

Fortunately, there is help. Many leagues do a good job teaching their coaches the fundamentals of the game. Some leagues even offer mandatory coaching clinics for their coaches. These are really good starts, but generally not enough - especially as the kids you coach get older and better. Before every season that I coach, I’ll watch several instructional tapes to review the fundamentals and also learn new material. I re-watch tapes, often with my kids that we’ve seen before and buy a couple of new ones to add some wrinkles. Of course, at SportsKids.com, we do offer 1,000’s of instructional books and videos, but the point of this section is to simply say to use whatever method you choose to make sure that you teach correct fundamentals. Every kid, even young kids, can learn with good coaching and remember: “Practice makes Permanent”.

The “Dad Hat” and the “Coach Hat”

There is a huge difference between being a “Dad” and being a “Coach”. Each has different responsibilities and relationships with the kids. Unfortunately, there isn’t a lot of overlap between the two roles. I literally have two hats: one says “Dad” and the other says “Coach”. Over the years, my kids and I have learned to separate the two so I don’t wear the hats too often, but it does make the distinction more literal. Coaching your own children is one of the real challenges of youth sports because sometimes, you child wants or expects to have a dad when you’re the team’s coach. If you can separate these roles, and both of your expectations, you and your child will have a much better youth sports experience.

Ken Kaiserman is the president of SportsKids.com, a leading youth sports website featuring games, sports news, sports camp and league directories, community features, and the SportsKids.com Superstore with over 150,000 products.

Ken coaches youth football, basketball and baseball. He also serves on the local little league board of directors as well as the Park Advisory Board.

Most of us are looking for easy ways to loose weight. Well, here today we will talk about how to do just that. It might not be as hard as you might think. We all have friends who pack on the double patty burgers with two extra large fries each day. After they swallow this, they will go onto eating a whole bag of candy and wash it down with a half gallon of milk. Sound like some of your college buddies? Through out the day, we get thirsty. All living creatures do. What do you turn for most often? Sodas, we all do it. Why? Because they are easy to get and they taste good. Who can turn down a sweet drink after a jog in the sun? Well, you shouldn’t be doing that. There is two reasons why. One is because it is wasted calories. You don’t get anything back from the soda. You might get some pep from the caffeine, but that is about it. You might get a slight sugar rush, but it won’t be anything that last. The second reason is, because we are slightly hungry. We aren’t hungry enough to go get something to eat, but a drink will satisfy us enough to our next meal.
Instead of drinking sodas all day long, drink juice. More specifically, juice with the pulp in it. I know what you are thinking. There is more of a purpose to this than moving your bowels. We all have had a bit of a problem in the bathroom department and have ran for the juice with the pulp in it. Juice with the pulp in it will fill you up. Unlike sodas, there is something actually there to curb your hunger. You will drink less because you will get full. Try it, you will be surprised.
Always stick to wheat bread. Don’t eat the white stuff. Whole wheat products are known to stabilize blood sugar levels. This mean you won’t get hungry as fast. This is an easy way to curb your hunger.
Here are some tips you can use when making sandwiches.
Avoid cheese. We put way to much cheese on everything these days. I won’t be surprised if some day they make a cheese covered soda can. This is a heart attack waiting to happen. There is no reason to eat this much cheese. One of the ways you can cut down on the amount of cheese you eat is by shredding the cheese. Use the shredded cheese instead of cheese slices. You can cover the same amount of area, with less cheese. You can also do this on salads as well.
Cut down on the mayo. I would suggest that you cut this completely out. I know some guys who put so much mayo on their sandwiches, I can’t see how they eat them. I can’t see how they can taste anything but the mayo. A good suggestion to do it, sprinkle a little of Italian dressing on the sandwich. Just enough so you can taste it. This will really cut down on the fat. Also, if you make your own, you can control how much oil is in the dressing.
Cut down on bread. If you are going out to eat and the waiter drops a bread basket on the table, push it away. Don’t eat the bread. The more carbs you can get away from the better. Cut out the silly snacks. Don’t fill up on potato chips between meals. Instead grab an apple or some veggie sticks. You will be amazed at how good they are once you give them a chance. I love green peppers sprinkled with a little salt. I will take these any day over potato chips.
Stay away from fatty cuts of meat. Don’t go to the store and buy the most fatty cuts of pork you can get. Take it home and trim the fat off of it if you have to. There are tons of ways you can cook lean meat so that it isn’t dry. That is why most people like the fat in the meat, it adds juice. Also with spices, you can fix the problem of not having the flavor that fat adds.
Stay away from too much dairy. No need to get full of ice cream that is full of fat. Instead if you must consume it, go for the low fat versions. Try to get flavors with a lot of fruit in them or add your own fruit. You won’t notice the missing fat if you add some flavor to it. Avoid frying stuff. Learn how to bake, broil and steam your foods. You will be surprised at how much fat frying adds to the dish. Sure it tastes better, but it won’t help your waist any.
There you have it. Those don’t sound too hard do they? I’m sure after you repeat them after awhile, they will get easy to do.

If you are having trouble losing weight, please visit www.natural-stamina.com/LoseThatWeightFast.html for further articles.

About the Author

Alex Sharp is CEO of Natural-Stamina.com a program helping men with all issues of their health and sex lives.

Ah, the crisp cool breeze, the invigorating feel of the outdoors as the leaves start to turn colors, the sound of kids laughing on their way to school.

Fall is the time for new beginnings. New classes, new curriculum, new programs, new start. You’ve relaxed over the summer and now you’re ready to reach higher, push further.

You’re pumped. You’re excited about starting a new season. You’re ready to tackle new challenges.

There’s nothing like feeling the momentum of new beginnings. If you’ve been wanting to lose weight and get into amazing shape, why not use this momentum to your advantage?

Momentum is one of the most underrated factors in achieving a better body.

Momentum can give you what you need to start an exercise program, stick with it and reap major rewards.

As we all know, it’s very easy to do something when we feel excited about it. This is not a bad thing if you learn to use it.

This initial excitement does wear off eventually, but by the time it does, you could be so far ahead already, that maintenance is easy.

Why not use this initial excitement to kick-start your treadmill exercise program?

Plan a program that you can get excited about, something that will push you just beyond where you are at right now physically. Then go for it! Don’t wait until that excitement wears off. Do it! Live in the moment.

With that in mind, here are 3 steps to planning a treadmill exercise program that gets results:

1) Grab a journal or notebook and write down everything you want to achieve in vivid detail. How do you want to look? How do you want to feel? What would you like to fit into? etc.

Reread this vivid description at least once a day. By keeping in mind the end result, you’ll be highly motivated to push yourself further.

2) Start exercising and make notes on every workout session that you do. How long did you go? What was your perceived exertion? How many miles did you cover?

3) Review your workout session notes every week and then add something a little bit more challenging to the next week’s workout.

For example, if your average exercise time last week was 20 minutes - up your average time to 30 minutes. If your perceived exertion was 5 on a scale of 1 to 10 then up it to 7. Make these little adjustments every week and you will be progressing leaps and bounds towards your fitness goals!

Plus the inspiration you get from charting your progress will keep you going long after that initial momentum is fizzling out.

By following these steps and using the fall momentum to inspire you, starting a treadmill exercise program becomes both exciting AND easy. Learn to use momentum to your advantage and you’ll achieve more than you ever dreamed possible!

About the Author

Kathryn O’Neill is chief editor for Treadmill Review, a consumer oriented website focusing on the home treadmill market.

For weekly best buys, sales and free treadmill brand reviews, go to http://www.TreadmillReview.net.

I don’t have much of a problem with belly pouch or bulge, since I’ve been doing one ab excercise or another for most of my life to abs flat.

But most of you haven’t done any kind of ab excercise recently or ever in your life so you can benefit by my experience with one particular ab excercise especially.

I know a small ab excercise that can literally whittle your waistline and work your abs at the same time. If you work diligently at this ab excercise, that is.

Here is my ab excercise:
Lie on your back with your knees bent, feet resting on the floor.

Bend your right leg sideways and rest your right ankle on your left knee.

Link your fingers behind your head and situp, twisting your torso as you do, so that your left elbow touches your right knee.

Then lay back down and repeat 20 times. If you’re a beginner at ab exercise you may want to work your way up slowly, starting with five ab excercises everyday and each week adding one more ab excercise on.

Do this ab exercise with both legs, resting your left ankle on your right knee as you repeat the selected amount of crunches.

I took my waist down an inch doing this ab exercise, and I’ve never gone back up. There is no reason why you can’t too!

Believe me. Once you start to apply this you will begin seeing results very soon.

About the Author

Subscribe to David Grisaffi’s FREE Firm and Flatten Your Abs Newsletter and claim your free report on Weight Loss and Fitness

Want to lose that holiday weight that you put on in time for a special event? Do you only have a few months before you need to squeeze yourself into formal wear? Before all eyes turn to you, grab a friend and get started on having a regular workout routine. Whether you find time to exercise in the morning or prefer to hit the gym after work, keeping yourself motivated will be easy once you start seeing the physical changes that occur in your body. Not only will you tighten and tone muscles, you may even lose a few inches off your waistline. Being in great physical shape will increase your stamina, give you boundless amounts of energy, and fight against diseases caused by obesity like diabetes.

Aside from health reasons, most people like to set and achieve specific goals. Milestones regarding weight loss and physical fitness top the list as some of the greatest accomplishments ever achieved by some individuals. Weight loss reality programs show just how dramatic it can be to lose a pound or two at the most crucial time of your life.

A regular workout routine offers chances to socialize with new people. When visiting the gym, strike up a conversation with its staff or the person on the treadmill next to you. Utilize online classifieds to advertise the need to find an activity partner who needs and enjoys exercise as much as you do. Take your pet for a walk or put your baby in her stroller and enjoy the scenery around you. Once you become physically aware of the benefits of keeping an exercise routine, you will work hard to find time to fit it into your daily schedule.

Workout routines can be changed up on a regular basis to keep them from being stale. Purchase a new video or sign up for a new class and see what positive changes you can make in your life today.

Here are 3 easy golf tips that will immediately give you a better swing and improve your hitting! It did for me almost instantly once I got the feel of it.

I went from hitting maybe one fairway per round and not being able to hit my driver to hitting the vast majority of fairways off the tee while still enjoying the extra distance of using my driver. This is exciting stuff for a mid to high handicapper…so read on.

Golf Tip #1 - Be certain that you are taking the club back by turning your shoulders NOT picking up your hands.

By taking the club back in a “one piece” takeaway, which only means that your shoulders start the turn back and your arms, hands and thus club follow in one piece - by doing this you will automatically put the golf club on the proper swing plane. So long as you do not try to help the club do its job, you will be well down the path to a more solid swing and consistent hits with this tip alone.

Practice this in front of a mirror with or without a club, making sure that your head stays solidly in place and that your three body parts mentioned above go to at least parallel as one unit.

Golf Tip #2 - Don’t overswing and swing easy. They engineer the clubs to do the hitting - getting the ball off the ground and a certain distance no matter how hard you swing. As a matter of fact, the harder you swing the less the club can do what it is supposed to do and you will sacrifice both distance and accuracy.

Just make a full shoulder turn and a good wrist cock then return the club from where it came from! When I say swing easy I do not mean decelerate on the downswing. What I do mean is find a good tempo and naturally accelerate through the ball on your downswing with a complete follow through.

Golf Tip #3 - Relax and enjoy the game. Tension in your golf swing is your biggest enemy. One of the tips that I have recently read is that once you get over your shot and are ready to swing….SMILE!! Believe it or not it works…it is extremely hard to be tensed up and smile at the same time.

These 3 simple tips have taken 5 to 10 of those “dumb” giveaway strokes off my game and it will yours too! Just get the swing thought in your mind of takeaway with the shoulders for a full turn, easy swing back through the ball to let the club do the work and relax! You will be excited to start see those shots going longer and straighter very soon!

Happy golfing!

About the Author

Kent is an avid golfer and student of the game.

If you want to build muscle, lose body fat or improve your performance in a sport, you can lift all the weights and do all the cardio you want, but without proper nutrition, diet and supplements you will find yourself falling short of your goals. On this page we will help you gain a better understanding of what kind of foods you should eat and which ones to stay away from, how to set up a daily meal plan and what supplements you should take.

MICRONUTRIENTS

Protein: Muscles need protein to grow, so you need to make sure you are getting plenty, between 1 and 1 grams per pound of bodyweight. Calories from protein should be about 35 percent of your total daily calories. It is important to remember, when setting up your meal plan, that each gram of protein has 4 calories. Some good sources of lean protein are; chicken breast, lean beef/hamburger, whole eggs, egg whites, milk, cottage cheese and protein powders. When eating eggs limit yolks to no more than half of the total number of eggs you are eating, to lessen cholesterol and saturated fat. intake ( example: 3 whole eggs and 3 egg whites).

Carbohydrates: Carbohydrates are your body’s main energy source. If you are training hard you need to take in a good amount of quality carbohydrates, about 45 percent of your daily caloric intake. There are 4 calories for every gram of carbohydrates. Complex carbs are slow burning and will give you a more steady source of energy. Good choices for complex carbs are: oats, potatoes, yams, whole wheat pasta/bread, brown rice, vegetables and maltodextrin powder. White rice, pasta and bread are over processed and have little to no nutritional value at all, so keep them to a minimal intake. Simple carbs are fast burning giving you a quick burst of energy and insulin release and then a quick drop off. These are best used for pre and post workout drinks. Fruits, juices, some cold cereals, white rice/pasta and carbohydrate powders are some sources of simple carbs. Keep these to a minimum in your daily meal plan.

Fat: Your body needs certain fats for proper function of your vital organs and brain. These fats have also been proven to improve your metabolism and aid in building muscle and fat loss. Saturated fats are solid at room temperature or when cold, these fats you want to stay away from as much as possible (animal fats, egg yolks, butter). Some good fats are omega 3 and 6 which are found in salmon and some other fish, olive, safflower and flax oil. Each gram of fat contains 9 calories. 20 percent of daily calories should come from fat.

Water: Muscles are made up of about 2/3 water, so if you want big muscles, drink a lot of water. Try to drink 16 ounces of water with each meal or to 1 gallon of water a day.

SETTING UP YOUR MEAL PLAN

Counting calories can be a painful and time consuming experience, so here is an easier way to plan your meals. Keep the portion size of protein to about the size of your palm, more if you are trying to get big. For carbohydrates the portion size should be about the size of your fist, a little less if you are trying to lose weight or a little more for gaining weight. You shouldn’t need to focus much on fat intake because there will be some in most everything else you eat. If you find that you aren’t getting enough try adding natural peanut butter or some oil to protein shakes, or oil to veggies and salads. You can also supplement with CLA, ALA or FISH OIL capsules.

Eating 3 big meals a day is very outdated and is not effective for losing fat or building muscle. Your body needs constant nourishment throughout the day and in order to do this you must eat smaller meals more frequently throughout the day, every 2-3 hours. Each meal should contain protein and carbohydrates for better utilization in your body and to keep blood sugar levels constant. Try to spread your daily protein, carbohydrates and fat equally between 5-8 meals a day, this doesn’t need to be exact. If you are trying to lose fat, lower the amount of carbohydrates you eat in the evenings.

SUPPLEMENTATION

For fat loss, in addition to lowering you carbohydrate intake, you will want to take a high quality fat burner in the morning and again about 6 hours later. These supplements have been proven to dramatically increase the amount of fat you can lose and will give you the extra energy you will need when on a lower calorie diet. Meal replacement shakes (MRP) are also a good idea, they contain all the nutrients you body needs for a complete meal with only about 250 calories.

If getting huge is your goal, be sure to try creatine with your workout shakes. There have been hundreds of studies performed that show creatine is very effective in building size, strength and endurance. Pre and Post workout drinks are vital for helping you recover and grow from your workouts. They should contain a quality whey protein (30-50 grams), a carb powder like maltodextrin(60-100 grams), glutamine(1-5 grams) and creatine(5-10 grams). Try taking a testosterone booster twice a day to dramatically increase the amount of muscle and strength you will gain.

Make sure you are getting all of your essential vitamins and minerals by taking a good multi vitamin and mineral supplement. ZMA is a great night time formula that will improve your sleep and increase your testosterone at night. Studies have shown that the majority of people who exercise are deficient in magnesium and without proper supplementation (ZMA) they will find it very difficult to make progress. Vitamin C is another one that you can’t go without. Vitamin C strengthens your immune system and connective tissue and is crucial for speeding your recovery from intense exercise. Depending on your size and activity level take 2-5 grams spread throughout the day, but mainly before and after your workout.

This should be enough information to get you on the right track. Keep an eye open for our future articles that will go more in depth with more advanced techniques for building your best body. Remember that training, diet and supplementation are all equally important in developing your body, and if any one of them is deficient you will fall short in realizing your full potential. Work hard, stay motivated and be consistent and you will build your No Limits Physique.

Sam Anderton
No Limits Physique
www.nlpbodybuilding.com

About the Author

Sam has 12 years of experience lifting weights and has always maintained a lean muscular physique. He has Deadlifted 675 pounds in competition at a bodyweight of 240, and has beaten a professional strongman at the Conan’s Wheel strongman event.

Have you got to grips with the Child Trust Fund and the benefits that it can bestow upon your kids?Few UK parents remarkably

modest number of parents seem to have heard of the fact that all infants are given a free £250 voucher from the government to place in a Child Trust Fund. This vouchercan be invested in any one of threekinds of CTF account, Stakeholder - a shares-based account that changesinto cash, a savings account or a shares account. It is a superb chance to invest life of a infant

Scottish Friendly is an authorised provider of the Child Trust Fund Voucher. The State is keen for the public to have access to Stakeholder accounts and this is the kind of account that we supply. This means that:

• Investments are paid into our Managed Growth Fund, which hopes to provide good growth potential
• An investment is made partly in shares to take advantage of potentially higher returns over 18 years,compared to a cash deposit account (although the value of shares canfall as well as rise whereas capital would be protected in a deposit account)
• It comes with a low ‘Stakeholder’ funds charge of only 1.5% per year
• When reaching 18 the young person will receive a lump sum, wholly free of Capital Gains and Income Tax under current legislation
• It is very affordable - additional payments can be placed in the account from only £10

One of the great attractions of the Child Trust Fund is that anyone - parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles, friends - can give to the Fund to a top limit of £1,200 per year to help augment the child’s Fund (once added, this money is not able to be withdrawn).

In a nutshell our Stakeholder account offers a good balance between potentially high returns and a reduced level of risk. There is also the extra assurance that our account is in accordance with with the Government’s stakeholder criteria. However this does not mean that returns are guaranteed or that Stakeholder accounts are appropriate for everyone. Bear in mind that the value of shares in the Managed Growth Fund (where your Child Trust Fund money is invested) can go down as well as go up and is not guaranteed.

Only children who were born on or after 1st September 2002 are allowed to start up a Child Trust Fund. If you have children born before the {1st of September 2002 who are not qualified you could think about saving for them with a Child Bond - it’s a tax-free savings plan intended for long-term growth. The fact is that investing for your daughter is a sensible means of preparing for hard times that may lie ahead.